Friday Fave: Fiona Coyne by Saint Pepsi

First things first: pardon the dry spell. I was supposed to write something about the book I’m reading, but I got caught up in my Community re-watch, hence the nonexistence of that post.

Anyway, I want to start this little series of posts called Friday Fave, where I’ll be posting my favorite song on–yep, you guessed it–Fridays. For the first Friday Fave, I am putting the spotlight on Saint Pepsi’s latest track, “Fiona Coyne.”

“Fiona Coyne” was released three days ago from Carpark Records, Saint Pepsi’s newest label. I came across Saint Pepsi last year when I was browsing the Keats Collective Bandcamp page and chanced upon free album downloads (Keats Collective does that every now and then). Saint Pepsi’s debut album Hit Vibes was one of my downloads, and I got hooked to it. Other free downloads of Saint Pepsi’s songs soon followed. In fact, Saint Pepsi’s single “Unhappy” reigns as #1 in my iTunes’ Top 25 Most Played playlist until now. I’ve been into futurefunk, vaporwave, and other related and overlapping genres since then.

Saint Pepsi (Ryan DeRobertis) released his sophomore EP Gin City this year, and it looks like another album is in the works. “Fiona Coyne” is part of his debut release with Carpark Records, “Fiona Coyne/Fall Harder.” And this track is enough to make me giddy with anticipation for his next record.

“Fiona Coyne” contains the trademark disco/funk vibes Saint Pepsi is know for, but what makes it fresh is Saint Pepsi’s vocals, which, if I’m not mistaken, is a first–he has never sung in his previous songs. Besides the vocals, what makes it my fave is the infectious guitar riff. The song actually reminds me of Chromeo; it’s fun, and it’s something you load in your iPod and play at a party. It’s practically bursting with good vibes. This is a step up from Saint Pepsi’s sampling days–not the they were a bad thing (I’d be a hypocrite if I say otherwise because I love Hit Vibes and Gin City), but this proves that the guy is getting better at his craft.